Oncidium 21st scentury ‘Hula Girl’

ABSTRACT

A new variety of orchid plant of the genus Oncidium, named Oncidium 21st Scentury ‘Hula Girl’, distinguished particularly by flowers of a clean and striking color of compact size that are highly fragrant, that are arranged pleasingly on a raceme and growing quickly to sexual maturity.

Latin name of the species and grex of the plant claimed: The Latin nameof the species and grex of the plant claimed is Oncidium 21^(st)Scentury.

Variety denomination: The present invention comprises a new and distinctcultivar of Oncidium orchid and hereinafter referred to by the nameOncidium 21^(st) Scentury ‘Hula Girl’.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Not Applicable.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The genus Oncidium is one of the largest and most diverse within theorchid family; numbering more than 600 distinct species distributedthroughout the American tropics and extending into South-CentralAmerica.

Many, if not most of the species within the genus, grow as epiphytes.The remaining species thrive growing as lithophytes or terrestrials. Allexhibit a sympodial growth habit.

The first Oncidium hybrid was created in 1898 by a Mr. C. Vuylsteke andregistered by the same. There are now over 7,600 unique hybrids ofOncidium as of June, 2022.

Oncidium hybridizing is accomplished through sexual methods. Asexualpropagation of Oncidium is done in aseptic tissue culture from apical oraxillary shoots.

The new cultivar was discovered within a group of sexually producedplants on May 18, 2017. The inventor selected Oncidium 21^(st) Scentury‘Hula Girl’ from a population of 200 plants grown in 3.25 inch squareblack plastic pots, grown in a poly-film covered greenhouse in MountainView, Hi. Oncidium 21^(st) Scentury ‘Hula Girl’ was re-flowered andsubmitted by the inventor to a commercial tissue culture laboratory inBangkok, Thailand on Oct. 14, 2020 for asexual reproduction via tissueculture technique.

Other seedlings of the same varieties that were used to produce Oncidium21^(st) Scentury ‘Hula Girl’ have been commercially available fromothers.

The characteristics of Oncidium 21^(st) Scentury ‘Hula Girl’ asdescribed herein have demonstrated to be fixed and retained throughsuccessive generations of asexual reproduction. Oncidium 21^(st)Scentury ‘Hula Girl’ reproduces true to type. The characteristics areclearly distinguishable from the characteristics of those other plants.The inventor has reason to believe that Oncidium 21^(st) Scentury ‘HulaGirl’ is superior to other seedlings in floriferousness, fragrance andflower color.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined tobe basic characteristics of the new cultivar which in combinationdistinguish this Oncidium orchid as a new and distinct cultivar:

Flowers of the new cultivar are burgundy, soft pink and white in color.The sepals and petals are burgundy tipped cream distally. The labellumis soft pink centrally with glossy mid-lobes, bottom third white. Thecallus is soft pink and develops as a swelling in the lip terminatinginto many small diverging horns divided by a central crest about 0.5centimeters (cm) long. The anther cap is cream in color. The column isburgundy throughout. The column wings are rectangular and translucent.The flowers are rigid and bear an intense, pleasing fragrance.

The natural horizontal spread is 3.2 cm; natural vertical spread is 4.7cm; dorsal sepal width 0.7 cm; dorsal sepal length 1.7 cm; petal width0.6 cm; petal length 1.4 cm; lateral sepal width 0.6 cm; lateral sepallength 1.7 cm; labellum width 1.5 cm; labellum length 1.7 cm.

The plant produces two branching inflorescences on first bloom with 80flowers.

Inflorescence is a basal raceme, upright or arching, branching andapproximately 50 cm long. The plant is relatively compact, and the sizeof the inflorescence is appropriate to the overall size of the plant andtypical pot size for this cultivar.

There are generally six leaves per mature psuedobulb: two from the apexand four from the base. The apical leaves measure 35 cm long and are 5cm wide. The leaves from the base of the pseudobulb measure 10-22 cmlong and are 5 cm wide. Axillary leaves, or bracts, are not common belowthe leaves at the base of the psuedobulb. The shape of the leaf islanceolate acuminate, and semi-conduplicate at the base. The texture andsubstance is slightly undulate and somewhat coriaceous. The plants ofOncidium 21^(st) Scentury ‘Hula Girl’ grow to maturity and flower inapproximately 18 months.

Plants of the new cultivar have not been observed under all possibleenvironmental conditions. The phenotype may vary significantly withvariations in the environment, such as temperature, light intensity, andday length, without any change in genotype.

The instant plant differs from parent cultivars in flower color andfragrance. The closest comparison to the new cultivar can be made to theparent cultivars used to create Oncidium 21^(st) Scentury ‘Hula Girl’.The original unpatented plant material; named Oncidium Aka Baby andOncidium Pagans Scent possess the same general growth habit and speed tomaturation, but lack the uniquely colored and intensely fragrant flowersof Oncidium 21^(st) Scentury ‘Hula Girl’.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The drawings show the colors of the new variety as nearly true aspossible with an illustration of this type. In the drawings:

The drawing on the first sheet, labeled FIG. 1 , is a singleinflorescence of Oncidium 21^(st) Scentury ‘Hula Girl’ to illustrateoverall inflorescence characteristics typical of this new cultivar.

The drawing on the second sheet, labeled FIG. 2 , is a single flower ofOncidium 21^(st) Scentury ‘Hula Girl’ to illustrate shape and color.

DETAILED BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION

All color references are measured against the Pantone® Color System.Colors and numerical measurements are approximate, as plant growth anddevelopment depend on environmental conditions and cultural practicessuch as: light levels, temperature, water quality, fertilization formulaand rate, among others, without any variance in genotype.

Plants used for this description are 24 months old in vivo and grown in3.25 inch square, black plastic pots, grown in a poly-film coveredgreenhouse in Mountain View, Hi.

Day temperatures range from 75-85° F. and night temperatures range from55-65° F. Light levels are approximately 2500 foot candles. Thisinformation reflects the annual variations for the area.

-   Botanical classification: Oncidium 21^(st) Scentury ‘Hula Girl’.    -   -   Parentage.—Seedling selected from the cross of the            following.        -   Seed parent.—An unnamed cultivar of Oncidium Aka Baby.        -   Pollen parent.—An unnamed cultivar of Oncidium Pagans Scent.            The designations above list the Genus and grex for both            parents.-   Propagation:    -   -   Type.—Asexual propagation by aseptic tissue culture through            Axillary shoot.        -   Time to initiate and elongate roots in-vivo.—Approximately            90 days.        -   Time to produce fully rooted young plant.—Approximately 250            days.-   Root description: Velamen covered roots, approximately 0.2 cm in    diameter, and white in color with yellow/green growing tip. The    exact shades of white and yellow/green vary greatly with minimal    changes to environmental conditions.-   Plant description: Under optimal growing conditions, plants of the    new cultivar attain a mature size of about 35 cm (top of leaf plane)    and 6 cm wide (width of largest psuedobulb).-   Foliage description:    -   -   Arrangement.—Sympodial growth habit.        -   Quantity of leaves per growth.—Each sympodial growth has            shown six leaves, two on the apex of the psuedobulb and four            from the axis at the base.        -   Leaf length.—Leaves measure up to 35 cm in length.        -   Leaf width.—The width of the largest leaf measures 5 cm.        -   Leaf shape.—The shape is lanceolate acuminate from base to            tip, texture and substance is slightly undulate and somewhat            coriaceous throughout.        -   Leaf apex (observed).—The apex measures approximately 35 cm.        -   Psuedobulb shape.—The psuedobulb shape is a laterally            compressed ovoid.        -   Psuedobulb length.—The pseudobulb is approximately 6-10 cm            long.        -   Psuedobulb width.—The pseudobulb is approximately 6 cm wide            and 3 cm thick.        -   Foliage color.—Under the described growing conditions, the            foliage color on both sides of the leaves is similar to            Pantone® 7483C (green). There is no vein color distinction.            The psuedobulb color is similar to Pantone® 378C (green).-   Flower/inflorescence description:    -   -   Description.—Upright or arching raceme similar in color to            Pantone® 378C (green) approximately 0.3-0.5 cm in diameter,            coriaceous, branching, approx. 50.0 cm long on a first bloom            plant with 80 flowers. Each internode is coriaceous in            texture, carrying 4-6 flowers spaced 2.0-3.0 cm apart and            varying between 6.0-9.0 cm in length. Buds are ovoid,            0.6-0.8 cm in diameter and 4.0-6.0 cm in length. Bud            coloration is unique to each individual flower, displaying            different hues as the bud matures. As such, selecting an            individual color from a color chart would be both difficult            and misleading. Pedicels are coriaceous in texture,            approximately 0.1 cm in diameter and 0.4 cm in length.            Flowers begin approximately ¼ of the way up the raceme and            are spaced 2.0-3.0 cm apart. The size of the inflorescence            is appropriate to the overall size of the plant and typical            pot size of the cultivar.        -   Dimensions.—Flower dimensions are: natural horizontal spread            is 3.2 cm; natural vertical spread is 4.7 cm; dorsal sepal            width 0.7 cm; dorsal sepal length 1.7 cm; petal width 0.6            cm; petal length 1.4 cm; lateral sepal width 0.6 cm; lateral            sepal length 1.7 cm; labellum width 1.5 cm; labellum length            1.7 cm.        -   Coloration.—The dominant flower color that appears on the            sepals and petals is a burgundy, similar to Pantone® 188C.            The sepals and petals are burgundy basally; similar to            Pantone® 188C. The sepals and petals are tipped cream,            similar to Pantone® 7499C. The upper two-thirds of the            labellum is soft pink; similar to Pantone® 204C. The            mid-lobes are soft pink; similar to Pantone® 204C. The lower            third of the labellum is white; similar to Pantone® 000C.            The callus is soft pink; similar to Pantone® 204C. The            anther cap is cream; similar to Pantone® 7499C. The base            color of the column is burgundy; similar to Pantone® 188C.            The pollinia are completely concealed by the anther cap. If            this is removed, the pollinia may be extracted. The pollinia            are deep yellow; similar to Pantone® 143C, but range in            shades of yellow as the flower ages.-   Quantity of flowers & time to flower:    -   -   Flower longevity.—Flowers can last longer than 4 weeks on            the plant with good environmental conditions. A first bloom            plant will produce about 80 flowers depending on            environmental conditions.        -   Time to flower.—From fully rooted tissue culture plants is            approximately 18 months.        -   Natural flowering season.—This plant has appeared to be free            flowering.        -   Fragrance.—An intense, sweet, pleasant fragrance is noted.        -   Reproductive organs.—The Stamens, style and stigmas are            fused into a short structure called the column, possessing            one terminal anther with pollen grains fused to form            pollinia, which are covered by an anther cap. The stigma is            located under the column behind the pollinia. The ovary is            inferior, with three carpels being present.        -   Column.—The column is erect with rectangular wings on either            side of the stigma, 0.1 cm wide by 0.5 cm long.        -   Pollinia.—Two oval masses of pollen are present, about 0.15            cm in diameter and 0.15 cm long.        -   Stigma.—The stigma is concave, round, very glossy and            sticky.        -   Ovary.—The ovary is about 1.0 cm long by 0.2 cm wide.        -   Seed.—Seed production has not been observed.-   Disease & pest resistance: Resistance or susceptibility to known    pathogens and pests of Oncidium have not been observed on plants    grown under commercial production conditions.-   Hardiness zone: The type plant of Oncidium 21^(st) Scentury ‘Hula    Girl’ was commercially grown in Mountain View, Hi.—USDA Hardiness    Zone 11. Data from other plants of Oncidium 21^(st) Scentury ‘Hula    Girl’ in other USDA Hardiness zones is currently unavailable.-   General observations: Plants of Oncidium 21^(st) Scentury ‘Hula    Girl’ produce a pleasing arrangement of small sized, tri-colored,    star shaped flowers with clean, striking colors on a branching    raceme that is desirable in proportion for the size of the plant.    The flowers are long lasting and pleasantly fragrant. The plant    grows quickly to sexual maturity.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A new and distinct variety of orchid plantnamed Oncidium 21^(st) Scentury ‘Hula Girl’ substantially as illustratedand described herein.